China Focus: Spring Festival remixed -- robots, reinvented traditions and a global welcome

BEIJING, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- Russian social media influencer Liakhova Albina, who is based on China's tropical Hainan Island, had a whirlwind Spring Festival. She decorated her home with red couplets, browsed bustling holiday markets, prepared a Chinese New Year's Eve feast, and watched a dazzling display of drones and fireworks -- sharing each moment with her followers back home.

"This Spring Festival felt like a warmth that crossed borders," she said.

Her videos capture a broader shift across China, where this ancient festival is being remixed, powered by technology, infused with modern flair and reaching a global audience. This Year of the Horse is not just being celebrated; it is being reinvented.

ROBOTS, DRONES, AI

Beneath the century-old arcades of historic Zhongshan Road in Xiamen, a coastal city in east China's Fujian Province, a recent event celebrating intangible cultural heritage through digital technology drew eager crowds. AR and VR headsets allowed visitors to experience immersive digital detail as they admired intricate lacquer carvings, watched local opera performances and traced the history of "qiaopi," which were remittances or letters sent home by earlier generations of overseas Chinese.

But the real showstopper was a human-droid demonstration which saw a troupe of robots named "Wanglai" square up to human martial artists, incorporating elements of China's martial and theatrical intangible cultural heritage as they sparred bare-handed and shifted formations. The livestreamed performance attracted more than 100,000 viewers.

"We're using technology to present intangible cultural heritage in new ways," said Lin Gonghua, head of the local robotics company that was behind the robots on show.

The fusion of technology and tradition has become a hallmark of modern Chinese New Year celebrations. Nowhere was this more evident than in the "Spring Festival Gala," an annual TV spectacle that has become a national institution. This year, robots equipped with various functions once again shared the stage with human performers, their presence now familiar though ever-evolving.

Offstage, technology played a big part in the festivities. In Beijing, a robot rabbit entertained visitors with folk tales at a temple fair. In central China's Hunan Province, over 1,000 drones painted galloping horses and good wishes for the new year across the night sky.

Even the most intimate traditions have received a digital makeover, with people around the country using AI to compose couplets, generate personalized greeting videos, or create virtual family portraits.

TRADITION REINVENTED

In northwest China's Gansu Province -- a region famous for its rich equine culture -- another kind of revival is underway.

In an art village located in Tongwei County of Dingxi, young seal carver Lian Jie has created a whimsical Spring Festival product: a framed rubbing of a galloping horse carrying a gold ingot on its back. The design plays on the Chinese term "ma shang you qian," which means both "money on horseback" and "getting rich immediately," making it an auspicious and clever gift for the Year of the Horse.

"Creating popular Chinese zodiac-themed works helps keep traditional culture both grounded and innovative, while bringing it closer to people," Lian said.

Lian's creations follow a rising trend in China, as museums across the country tap into the "China-chic" wave with themed cultural products like Lian's.

The Gansu Provincial Museum's "Green Horse" is another example. The playful green plush toy modeled on the iconic "Bronze Galloping Horse" from the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.) has gone viral recently, inspiring a wave of fan-made creations online.

"Chinese zodiac culture is a powerful emotional connector," said Diao Jinuo, an expert in the field who is based at the Communication University of China. "The popularity of these horse-themed creations shows the Spring Festival merchandise market is maturing, reflects the enduring vitality of traditional culture, and opens new paths to keep festivals alive."

A GLOBAL WELCOME

Mexican national Renata, with a deep fascination for China, chose to spend this Chinese New Year travelling the country with her family. At a cultural center in Beijing, she made dumplings and wrote the Chinese character "Fu," which means good fortune. Upon discovering that she was born in the Year of the Horse, she happily crafted a sugar painting in the shape of her Chinese zodiac animal.

Renata told Xinhua that she thought the celebrations lasted a long time, but that each day brought something new. "And the fact that the family gathers around is amazing," she added, expressing hope that she would continue to celebrate Spring Festival with her family in the years to come.

Such experiences are becoming increasingly common. Thanks to visa-free travel policies and streamlined entry procedures, celebrating Spring Festival in China is now a growing trend among international tourists. During the nine-day holiday from Feb. 15 to 23, total cross-border trips averaged over 1.97 million per day, a 10.1 percent year-on-year increase, according to the National Immigration Administration on Tuesday. International visitors made over 1.31 million of these crossings, with the daily figure surging 21.8 percent.

And the festival's global appeal extends far beyond China's borders. In New York, the UN headquarters hosted a Year of the Horse gala. Frankfurt held a Spring Festival temple fair, featuring Yingge dance from Guangdong's Chaoshan region and Ansai waist drum performances, both of which are forms of traditional intangible cultural heritage in China. Social media has been flooded with videos of international users celebrating by making dumplings, or posting their own "Fu" characters.

Spring Festival, which has been officially inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, resonates globally with its core values of reunion and harmony.

Shahbaz Khan, director of UNESCO's Regional Office for East Asia, said that Spring Festival not only celebrates family and cultural heritage, but also welcomes people from around the world. He noted that the festival fosters intercultural dialogue, advances people-to-people exchange and conveys the benefits of shared prosperity. ■